L'Oreal heiress Liliane Bettencourt, the richest woman in the world, has died at 94

Liliane Bettencourt, heiress to the L'Oreal fortune, with Jean-Victor Meyers, her grandson.
Thomson Reuters
PARIS (Reuters) - French businesswoman and heiress of cosmetics giant L'Oreal Liliane Bettencourt, 94, has died, her daughter said on Thursday.

The Bettencourt family, which founded L'Oreal, has a 33 percent stake in the company.

"In this painful moment for us, I would like to reiterate, on behalf of our family, our entire commitment and loyalty to L'Oreal and to renew my confidence in its President Jean-Paul Agon and his teams worldwide," Françoise Bettencourt Meyers said in an emailed statement.

Agon was appointed chairman and chief executive of L'Oreal in 2011.

Bettencourt was also known as the wealthiest woman in the world, according to a rating compiled by Forbes earlier this year which estimated her net worth at $39.5 billion.